I Play Rocky Recounts Stallone’s Fight to Star in Rocky

Anthony Ippolito plays Sylvester Stallone in I Play Rocky, which follows the struggling actor and writer as he tries to secure the lead in the boxing drama he has written. Directed by Peter Farrelly, the film also features Matt Dillon as Stallone’s father and Tracy Letts as a studio executive. The film debuted at September’s Toronto festival, earning second place in the audience-award voting.

The story centers on Stallone’s refusal to sell the project unless he could play Rocky Balboa, despite producers’ doubts about his star appeal. The film recreates moments from the original and uses its familiar theme music. Its supporting cast includes Stephan James as Carl Weathers, who played Apollo Creed in the Rocky films, and AnnaSophia Robb as Stallone’s first wife, Sasha Stone.

The original Rocky, released in 1976, cost about $1 million and took in roughly $117 million at the domestic box office. It won the Academy Award for best picture and grew into a franchise of nine films, including the Creed series, with combined worldwide earnings of about $1.9 billion. Amazon acquired MGM, which owns the franchise, in a deal that closed in 2022.

I Play Rocky was first developed independently, but Amazon MGM Studios agreed to distribute it in 2025, allowing the production to use material from the original film. It began its theatrical run on seven screens on November 6, earning about $345,000, or roughly $49,300 per screen. A nationwide release is scheduled for November 20. The film has been praised for its performances and crowd appeal, though its retelling has also been criticized as overly flattering and thin on substance.